A show of strength from France with Mbappe in charge and comfortably in the last 16
1/07/2026 01:56 APE-MPE New York, United States 553 Greek
Item Number: 32065906
Playing dominant football for most of the match, the French national football team comfortably beat Sweden 3-0 and advanced to the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup, where Paraguay awaits them (5/7).
The first 25 minutes of the match, which took place in New Jersey, had an informative character, as the Swedes kept the “roosters” away from Zetterstrom’s goal. But somewhere there, Didier Deschamps’ players “turned up a gear” and completely dominated the pitch.
In the 32nd minute, Bappé found himself in an advantageous position from the left, but the shot he attempted sent the ball into the post of the Swedish goalkeeper, while five minutes later, one of the most impressive phases of the World Cup 2026 took place. Olisse received the ball in the area and with an amazing volley he was ready to celebrate the most beautiful goal of the competition, but the ball it stopped at Zetterström’s left post and lay perfectly for Dembele, who from close range sent it just over the Swedish goal.
The pressure of the “tricolor” continued unabated and in the 45th minute, Bappé, with one of his characteristic moves, entered the Sweden area from the left and after avoiding any defender in his way, sent the ball to rest in the left corner of Zetterström, giving the French national team the lead. And as soon as he scored his 17th World Cup goal, the Roosters captain ran to hug Didier Deschamps, under whose guidance he has made this great career at national team level.
Characteristic of the dominance of the French on the playing field, is the fact that in the first 45 minutes they executed six corners and had 15 final attempts with six of them in the opponent’s goal, while for their part the Swedes managed only three shots and one towards Menian’s goal.
The French entered the field after the break, with… acquired speed and in the 52nd minute, they proved once again why they are one of the best national teams in the world in the last 10 years. Tswameni took the ball in the semi-circle of the midfield and with a vertical pass he found Olise, who just outside the big area with a vertical pass also found Barkola in a shooting position, who placed perfectly and gave “air” of two goals to the “tricolors”.
Afterwards, the pace of the match “fell” with the French remaining dominant on the pitch and in the 74th minute reaching a third goal. Olisse took the ball just outside the area and with another excellent vertical pass, he set up a goal for Pape, who slotted into the opposite corner for Zetterstrom to score for the 18th time in World Cup history.
In the last (88′) remarkable phase of the match, Gyokeres crossed from inside the area, but Menian blocked the ball, while in conclusion, the “roosters” performed their best performance in the tournament, even against a strong opponent and sent a clear message to the co-contenders of the trophy, that they are determined to take back the “sceptres” of the world football.
FRANCE (Didier Deschamps): Menian, Dean (78′ Theo Hernandez), Upamecano, Couté (75′ Gusto), Saliba, Tswameni, Rabiot, Dembele (75′ Due), Bape (85′ Mateta), Olisse (85′ Sergi), Barcola.
SWEDEN (Graham Potter): Zetterstorm, Lagerbielke, Lindelof, Gudmundsson, Svensson (82′ Swanberg), Stroud (66′ Ali), Bergvall (66′ Zeneli), Agiari (82′ Nygren), Issac (89′ Nilsson), Elanga, Gyokeres.